“Back for more?” Emmett asked, referring to that morning when he had attacked the other man.
“Whatever, Emmett. Your meow isn’t as scary as you think it is. I can take care of myself,” he said, sitting down next to Tatyanna, causing her to tighten up and scoot closer to Dimtri. Althea continued to growl, and Dimitri told her to stop, but she refused to listen to him.
“Hey, dimwit. What’s up with your puppy?”
Dimitri refused to take the bait, but for the first time, he noticed just how tense Tatyanna was. It was causing his wolf to be just as tense. He leaned toward her and quietly whispered, “What’s wrong?”
Before she could answer, Cale leaned over toward her. “Hey there, I’m Cale, remember me?” he asked, holding out his hand.
Tatyanna automatically reached over to shake it. As soon as her hand touched his, she had a flashback to her time working in the Emergency Room, and a man with a death grip on her, hovering over the brink of life and death. Tatyanna blinked several times to clear her head, and when her vision evened out, she realized Cale was the man who almost had her life.
She immediately straightened up and slid off the bar stool, taking one step back. She changed her mind and stomped toward him, slapping him hard across the face catching him on his injured side.
He put his hand up to his cheek in bewilderment. “What the hell! Twice in one day, really?”
Althea stood by her side and snarled her lips as Cale tried to walk toward Tatyanna, but with one look at the animal he thought better of it and sat back down.
“What did you do?” demanded Emmett, about ready to jump over the bar and attack the other man.
“What the hell? Why are you questioning me? She’s the one who is off her hinges and hit me.”
“What did you do?” Emmett questioned again, his brows creasing at the thought of Cale overstepping his bounds, like he threatened he would.
“He was at the ER that night,” Tatyanna managed to get out, keeping her eyes downcast. “He held on to me, and I could feel the life draining out of my body. I would have died, if he didn’t let go.”
Emmett was the first to react, and he hurled over the bar. In a blink of an eye, he had Cale pinned against the opposite wall. “I should kill you! That was an act of treason.”
“It was a necessary act,” Cale said, not even denying what he had done.
“You could have killed her.”
Cale flashed Emmett a look that plainly said, ‘Are you stupid?’ “We need her alive. I was done waiting and twiddling my thumbs. If I hadn’t done what I did, we would still be nowhere, and I’d be going mad. This way, our journey can finally get started.”
“I should kill you,” Emmett snarled, tightening his grip around Cale’s neck.
“Because I acted in a way that benefits us all?”
“No, because I view what you did as an act of treason.”
“That’s your opinion. But, you can’t kill me.”
“Why is that?” Emmett hissed, wishing he could silence the man permanently.
“Because I have magic, and your Elders wouldn’t approve,” he gloated.
Dimitri stood up and glared at Cale. “How the hell did you get magic? Who gave it to you?”
Cale didn’t say anything. “I demand to know, who gave you magic?” Dimitri ordered, angrier this time when Cale refused to say anything. He wore a smug grin on his face as he stood there, pinned against the wall.
Tatyanna started to feel lightheaded, and felt a gentle gust of wind push her out of her seat and toward the three men. She didn’t know what she was doing, but she walked over to Emmett and gently laid her hand on his arm, pushing it down so he would release Cale. Cale smiled again, thinking the princess was on his side when she reached out and touched his chest.
A flash of yellow light started to come out of her hand, and he felt an excruciating pain, as if his heart was being torn out of his body. The yellow light grew brighter and brighter until all the magic had been pulled out and then it disappeared. Tatyanna pulled away from Cale, causing him to fall to the ground in a fetal position.
“What did you do to me?” he whined at her, trying to breathe through the pain.
Tatyanna looked down on her hand, and the magic within her brimmed to the top. She could feel power like she had never known, and could see in the wrong hands, it could be addictive and even deadly. She didn’t know the hows or the whys, but she did know one thing. “I took the magic out of you,” she said softly, amazed at what she had done.
“That wasn’t yours to take.”
“That wasn’t yours to have,” she retorted, still looking down at her hand, as the power inside it bubbled to the top, waiting to be released. Not knowing what to do, and not wanting to have something so volatile inside of her, she said, “Go,” and watched as the yellow light raised out of her hand, like a snake being summoned out of a vase by the lures of music, disappearing into the light.
“You had no right,” he croaked out, still hunched over in pain.
Tatyanna glared at him with hatred in her eyes. “I had every right. I thought I was going to die that night, and instead, I had to deal with the feelings that I could have saved you, but I didn’t. I was devastated.” She clenched her fists as she realized just how angry she was at the man. He had no idea what he had done, and his act was for selfish reasons only. “The next time you try to sway me with magic will be your last.”
“Is that a threat?” he asked, slowly standing up.
“It’s a promise,” she said. Tatyanna studied him for a second, and then raised her hand, and he was gone. Again, she didn’t know how she did it, but she just knew she had the ability to make him leave. Tatyanna unsteadily moved over to the bar and grabbed the first thing her hand touched. She pulled off the lid and lifted it to her lips, taking a long gulp. She sputtered, her eyes watering, but she drank from the bottle three more times before putting it down, enjoying the way the alcohol burned down her throat. “Okay, gentlemen. I think now is the time to explain what the hell is going on.”
Dimitri and Emmett stood, rooted to the floor, as she took three shots back to back. They stared at each other, dumbfounded for a moment, before Dimitri finally said, “I think it is time she met my uncle.”
Emmett turned to Dimitri, raising his hand up into the air. “Shall we travel by magic?”
Before he could whisper the necessary words, Tatyanna stopped him. “Actually, I’m kind of tired of magic. How about we go the old-fashioned way?”
“Okay,” Emmett said slowly, “but I don’t have a car, and you didn’t drive here, so how will we travel?”
Dimitri smiled broadly, then slapped Emmett on the back, “You are in luck, I have my truck. Come on, guys. I’ll take you.” Emmett groaned, and followed his friends out of the bar.
Chapter Twelve
History Lesson
Tatyanna didn’t think there was anything wrong with Dimitri’s driving, but she could tell Emmett was terrified for his life. He clung to the door as if it was his only lifeline in this world. She smiled as he bolted out of the truck, before it had even come to a complete stop.
“Wuss,” Dimitri said once he climbed out of his truck, grinning at his friend’s reaction.
“Whatever, let’s get this over with.”
Dimitri dismissed his friend’s words and walked toward his house. He stopped when he saw Tatyanna wasn’t following him.
“Aren’t you coming?” he asked her.
Tatyanna looked at his house, and then turned around to inspect at the houses on his street. He lived in a rough part of the city. All of the houses looked rundown and barely taken care of. She was sure if she was alone his neighbors would hurt her, or worse, and she was glad she didn’t have a purse or anything of value on her.
“You…you live here?” she stammered out. “Maybe, it would be safer if we met with your uncle elsewhere.”
“Things aren’t what they seem, Princess. You have nothing to worry about; no on
e will hurt you here,” he said, as if he could read her thoughts.
Tatyanna furrowed her eyebrows. Read her thoughts…was that even possible? Before she even had a chance to ask, Althea came up and started to nudge her forward. Tatyanna stood her ground and refused to move, but the wolf had other ideas. “Okay, okay.” She held up her hands to surrender. “I will go into the house, but if something happens to me, you will deal with my wrath,” she said to both Dimitri and Althea. She glanced one last time behind her to the empty street and shuddered. She was better off inside the house than out, and opened the front door.
As soon as she took a step inside, Tatyanna took a step back out the door and then she walked back into the house. “Did I just go through another portal of some sort?” she asked, peering around the inside of the house in awe.
“Nope, this is where I live,” Dimitri said proudly.
“But it’s beautiful inside, and the outside of your house looks run down, on the verge of collapsing.”
“Like I said, things aren’t always what they seem. No one would expect to find us in a place like this. Sometimes, the best places to hide are in plain sight.”
Tatyanna nodded, continuing to take in his house. The entry way had a high vaulted ceiling, with the biggest chandelier she had ever seen. In place of light bulbs, there were green floating candles, intertwined with a golden leaf double helix. She turned to Dimitri and asked, “Floating candles?”
“You never have to change them, they never melt away, and it’s great. You’ll come to appreciate magic. Just you wait and see.” But she wasn’t so sure about that. She saw a flash of black, and noted Emmett had turned into his cat form and ran past them. She sent Dimitri a questioning glance.
“I think I’ve died and gone to heaven,” she whispered, more to herself than to Dimitri, as he led her through the rest of the house. Tatyanna walked past a marble staircase and a couple of gargoyles that seemed to be guarding the stairs. She lightly ran her fingers across one of them and was surprised to feel heat coming from the statue. Before she could question Dimitri, he led her to a doorway and down a winding staircase with a black onyx railing and hardwood steps. As they descended, Tatyanna noted the lighting was fading with each step, until she came to the bottom and stood in total blackness. She tried to look behind her from where she came, but there wasn’t a single light anywhere.
“Dimitri?” she called out nervously.
“I’m right here,” he said, reaching out to grab her hand. “You have nothing to worry about.” He moved swiftly in the dark, as if his eyesight wasn’t hindered by the blackness. Tatyanna felt the air around her change, and she suddenly felt dizzy, like she was about to faint. It must have shown because Dimitri squeezed her hand and said, “It will pass. We are almost there.”
“What will pass? What do you mean we are almost there? Just how big is your house anyway?”
“All in due time.”
She sighed loudly, showing her irritation. “You are almost as bad as Emmett.”
“We can’t have that. I must be hanging around him too much. But, alas, we are here at last.”
“Here? Where is here?” she questioned, and then she saw a crack of light and smelled the campfire seconds before she saw it. “Just where exactly are we?” she asked, puzzled.
“This is still my house,” Dimitri explained.
“So….you guys have campfires in your house?” she asked slowly.
A deep laughter came out of the darkness, and Tatyanna saw Dimitri’s Uncle Luka. He bowed deeply and clasped her hands between his. “It’s good to see you again, Princess. And, to clarify things, we are actually in our home, in Yemaya.”
They were in what appeared to be a very large tree. The room was completely bare, except for the campfire in the middle. She saw a door and wondered where it led to. “Do I want to know?” she asked.
Luka smiled. “I think it is time we explained a few things to you. When I am done, you can ask as many questions as you like.”
“She has plenty of them.” Emmett took on his human form.
Tatyanna was still annoyed he had been lying to her, but she was warming up to the idea that Emmett and Tux were one in the same. Nonetheless, she wasn’t about to go easy on him. “No thanks to you.”
“Now, now, children,” Luka said, before an argument could break out. “Why don’t you all sit on the ground and I will begin.” Luka patiently waited until the three were comfortably seated. He walked over to one of the walls, lifted his left arm, and glided over the length of the wall, reminding Tatyanna of Vanna White when she turns the letters in Wheel of Fortune. But, instead of letters turning around, the wall started to lighten, and a picture appeared. Tatyanna glanced over her shoulder, and then felt silly. Of course there wasn’t a projector. These people had magic, and they didn’t need to rely on technology the way she had.
Tatyanna turned back to face the wall and let out a gasp. If she didn’t know better, she would have thought it was a painting, except it was too real. She was staring at a countryside, with perfectly flawless green grass. She could see a waterfall off in the distance, the light glittering off the water. Trees were scattered around in full bloom, with pink, purple, and white flowers. She saw bushes with berries on them, and a huge lake feeding to four rivers. She felt a pull toward the water, and she reached out with her hand, unaware of what she was doing, but she knew she wanted to touch the water, to feel the coolness on her skin. As she walked closer, Tatyanna felt a strong arm around her waist pulling her back and out of her daydreaming.
“Not so fast. You go through that wall, and we may never get you back,” Emmett said, returning her to her place next to him.
“What happened? What is that place?”
Luka stepped forward and clasped his hands in front of him. “All in due time, Princess. In order to explain the present, I have to explain the past.” He heard a collection of groans from Emmett and his nephew, and he gave them a pointed look. “I know you two are aware of all of this, but she isn’t. If you feel like you have somewhere better to be, then you are excused.” Emmett and Dimitri apologized. They knew better than to leave, as leaving wasn’t an option. Luka, pleased with their decision, clapped his hands in glee. “Great! Let us begin.” He paused for effect, and the room around him dimmed. “There was once a time when our kind walked this world amongst the humans,” he said, his voice deep and mysterious. “We lived in this world for generations, and were once considered friends, but over time, that all changed—”
“What happened?” Tatyanna asked, interrupting him, and the lights grew bright again.
Luka gave her a funny look. “I’m getting there. Have patience.” He paused once more, and the lights dimmed again. “At the beginning of time, our duty was to the world, and making sure all things were right and in balance. We showed the humans how to care for their sick, we taught them how to tend the earth, and to grow food from the ground. We worked beside them every day. They knew we had magic, and didn’t care, but as the years moved forward, feelings, and people, changed. There came a time when our magic was our worst enemy, and we were punished for it. Women were accused of being witches and were hung or burned alive, and men were left as widows with young children in their care, who only wanted their mothers. It was a hard time for us all, and no one was safe. Eventually, the villagers started to turn on the children and their lives were at stake. Some harsh decisions had to be made.”
“Are you talking about the Salem Witch Trials?” she asked as Luka took a dramatic pause in his history lesson, and the room got brighter.
“Yes,” he said in a rushed, pained breath.
“Cool,” she said, hearing Dimitri snickered behind her. He received a glare from his uncle.
“Now, please, stop interrupting me, or we will never get through this.”
“Sorry,” she said meekly.
“It’s okay.” Once again, the lighting changed, and Luka started his lesson back up again, in the same deep, mysterious voic
e.
“The Elders had been meeting for several weeks, trying to come up with a plan of action. They knew they would have to leave, but they couldn’t agree on where they should go. Moving wasn’t the problem. They weren’t sure if they would be able to go into hiding, or not. There were some people who, despite what was happening around them, didn’t want to leave. When it felt like the Elders kept circling around what to do, Grandfather appeared with a solution. Those who wanted to leave were able to, and those who wanted to stay could, with the opportunity to leave, if that should arise.”
“Who is Grandfather?” Tatyanna asked, injecting once again. Luka closed his eyes and his lips moved slowly, and she could see that he was counting to ten.
Emmett and Dimitri started to snigger quietly. This time, Luka didn’t bother giving them a look. He closed his eyes, and pinched the bridge of his nose, as he rushed to answer her question in order to get back to his history lesson. “He’s the oldest and most powerful of our kind. Some say he was the very first of our kind to be created, maybe even more.”
“More?” she asked.
“Princess!” Luka said harshly. “Unlike you, I do not want to be here all night. I have places I need to be. Now, please. Cease with the questions or we will never get through this,” he reprimanded her.
“Sorry.”
“Silence. All I ask for is silence.” Before Tatyanna could apologize again, Luka continued, as if the interruption hadn’t taken place.
“Grandfather had created a continent for all of us to go. One night, everyone went to bed in their homes, and then the next night, they woke up in the new world.” Luka pointed to the wall behind him, where the picture of rolling green hills and a huge lake shown in the distance. “This lake fed into four main rivers that divided our land, and with each section, there was a ruler Grandfather handpicked. The four rivers are: Nohig that leads to the North, Nohsip to the East, Setarphue to the South, and Sirgit to the West.
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